RESEARCH | STEWARDSHIP | SERVICE | EDUCATION

THE MEADOWS CENTER FOR WATER AND THE ENVIRONMENTNo natural resource is more important to our future than Water. Water is what we do.

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RESEARCH | STEWARDSHIP | SERVICE | EDUCATION | SERVICE

Texas Stream Team Citizen Scientist Environmental Monitoring

Program

THE MEADOWS CENTER FOR WATER AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Tuesday, March 5, 2018

No natural resource is more important to our future than Water. Water is what we do.

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Established in 1991, TST is administered through a cooperative partnership between:

The Texas Stream Team (TST) is a network of trained citizen scientists and supportive partners

working together to gather information about the natural resources of Texas

Goals Include:Water Quality EducationNon-point Source Pollution ReductionWatershed Awareness

The Texas Stream Team supports the UTRB 303 (d) Vision Project by providing education and

outreach support and materials, training and support of citizen science-based water quality

and environmental monitoring, technical support and assistance with water quality analyses

as well as coordinated water quality monitoring at strategic watershed locations.

Involvement with the UTRB 303(d) Vision Project

Total Maximum Daily Load Program: Communities Working Together to Improve Water Quality

Prospective Partners

If your organization is interested in becoming a TST Partner or getting involved with TST

and have not been in contact with me, please send me an email stating your interest

Contact Info:

Michael JonesState-wide Monitoring Coordinator

txstreamteam@txstate.edu512-245-1346

Next StepsTexas Stream Team is able to provide services tailored to the needs of each impaired segment

and potential partner

Training of partner organization staff regarding use incubator and E. Coli testing supplies or protocols

for specialized data collection.

Assist with grant writing for support of TST program activities and supplies, including watershed

protection planning, citizen science, education and outreach

Identify and track match for EPA 319 funding requirements

Report data trends, changes in water quality and potential watershed threats

Assist with watershed services

Recruit citizen scientists

Training events –get the word out, and attend/present if you are interested in

getting more sampling on your segments

About Our Partners

Texas Stream Team fosters partnerships that help citizen scientists collect and report water quality information, through the Texas Stream Team Partners Program. Public and private entities can train, equip, manage, and offer general support to the growing number of citizen monitors across the state.

Texas Stream Team invites industries, river authorities, regional councils, water districts, cities, state and federal agencies, private groups, and foundations to become partners with the program.

Partners provide support in the following ways:

1.Lead Partners ensure monitors receive all the resources needed, and coordinate monitoring activities. Lead Partners can fund resources directly, or Texas Stream Team can help form a Partner Network in which several Partners pool resources for their programs.

2.Patron Partners contribute in-kind services such as trainers, lab services, or data management.

3.Donor Partners make financial or equipment contributions such as monitoring kits.

Texas Stream Team Partnerships help:

1.Support and enhance environmental problem solving in partnership with citizens and public agencies.

2.Develop student interest in math, science, and environmental protection.

3.Establish communication networks for quickly detecting and reporting water quality problems.

4.Encourage pollution reduction and prevention.

*If you would like to become a partner, download the Partner Info & Form and return the completed forms (instructions included), email txstreamteam@txstate.edu or call 512.245.1346.

Texas Stream Team Website

Forms and Resources

Start a Texas Stream Team Monitoring Group

*Groups are vital to citizen water quality monitoring for a number of reasons

• Dividing the responsibilities will make the work load more manageable

• Should an individual wish to retire from monitoring, the group will be more effective at having someone take over the monitoring site

• Multiple monitoring locations will provide a much better understanding of the water quality

• Everyone is required to develop a plan for monitoring as a group prior to completing the Texas Stream Team (TST citizen water quality monitoring training

*Developing this plan involves filling four leadership positions and working with TST or partner agency staff to determine the appropriate monitoring locations and what goals to achieve as a monitoring group.

Group Coordinator

• The group coordinator serves as the primary point of contact for TST partner agency staff. This person is responsible for forming and maintaining the group, communicating updates and issues to TST or partner agency staff, and responding to requests from interested parties.

Training Coordinator

• The training coordinator is responsible for scheduling citizen water quality monitor trainings and, when necessary, recruiting interested participants for the trainings.

Equipment Coordinator

• The equipment coordinator is responsible for keeping track of monitoring equipment. This involves knowing who has each piece of equipment and keeping records of the expiration dates of reagents and media.

Quality Assurance Officer

• The quality assurance officer is responsible for reviewing data submissions for potential issues, following up with monitors to correct these issues, and conducting routine site visits. This individual must be familiar with the TST Quality Assurance Project Plan to ensure that monitoring is being carried out according to the protocol approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

• The TST Quality Assurance Officer Manual is available as a resource to quality assurance officers.

Need Assistance finding a Sponsor?

• Need $ for Water Quality Monitoring Kit Box?

• Texas Stream Team Fundraising Packet - includes a form for partners to submit information about when they will be requesting funds or support form for partners to submit information about when they will be requesting funds or support from a potential sponsor (a bank, a foundation, etc.) so that we can coordinate these efforts.

TST Grant-writing Assistance

1.Offer matching/in-kind funds for grants and watershed

protection plan activities

2.Serve on stakeholder committee

3.Grant review/feedback

4.Letter of support

5.Presentations

Texas Stream Team Partner Activity

Reports

• Used by Texas Stream Team to match federal

funds the program receives from the Federal 319

Program.

• PARs cover activity in three months prior to the month the report is completed.

Community Forum website

• Provide a place for you to share valuable knowledge and

experiences with each other online by posting questions, sharing

stories, photos and best practices, submitting wish lists, publicizing

events, providing feedback and brainstorming with others.

• The main goal of the Community Forum is to strengthen the TST

community across the state and to harness the knowledge and

valuable experience that many Stream Team participants have gained over the past 25 years.

Request Texas Stream Team Trainings

Standard Core Water Quality Monitoring

Probe Core Water Quality Monitoring

Advanced Water Quality Monitoring

Riparian Bull’s Eye Evaluation

Macroinvertebrate Rapid Bioassessment

Contact TST with questions

• Purchasing information on TST monitoring equipment, and offer assistance with operation, maintenance, and up-keep.

• Data Requests

• Training Requests

• Supply Requests

• Site Creation / Activation

Questions?

Texas Stream Team Training in Dallas

Presented by City of Dallas, Stormwater Management

Christopher Morris

Texas Stream Team

Established in 1991, then called Texas Watch, the program

has been made up of a Volunteer Citizen Monitoring

Network for sampling Water Quality.

Dallas joined in 2002, and uses it as a supplement

watershed education and Nonpoint Source (NPS) pollution

prevention.

This is a joint partnership with Texas Commission on

Environmental Quality, U.S. EPA Region VI, Texas State

University-San Marcos, and numerous partners including

the City of Dallas and Aquatic Alliance

Current Sites

Dallas Sites Dallas has about 75 active sites, with roughly 37-45

sampling every month.

For City of Dallas loan kits, site must be within City of

Dallas city limits, or on a water body feeding into or from

Dallas city limits, with reasonable justification.

City of Dallas checks out mainly the Lamotte wet

chemistry Core Kits. Recently, electronic probe sets were

acquired and will be put in circulation.

Trainings Currently, the City of Dallas host quarterly Core Class;

every January, April, July and October.

Occasionally, a class or a demo is held for a MN or MG

meeting, or at a Neighborhood Association.

City of Dallas is currently hosting a class at Sunset High

School, training the Environmental AP class. Other classes

have been held at Ursuline Academy and some Dallas area

Montessori Schools.

Follow ups and OTJ Trainings City of Dallas also offers Follow Up Trainings upon

request. As part of the QA/QC, an offer for a crash course

retrain is extended if a monitor’s data or sampling method

shows error.

Currently, CoD does not perform audits of monitors.

If requested, CoD will visit a site for a series of classes to

train monitors and to ensure sampling success.

Train the Trainer The City of Dallas has also helped in educating others to

become trainers themselves.

City of Irving

City of Flower Mound

City of Grapevine

Groundwork Dallas

Weatherford College

Trinity Environmental Academy

Citizen vs Professional Data As of now, City of Dallas does not use Citizen Data for

municipal decision making. Storm Water Mangt. has a

Water Quality team and Service Request team that

conduct official water sampling data.

That in mind, Citizen Scientists are welcome to contact

311 or Chris Morris/Stormwater Outreach with any issues

with water quality or help. Usually within 24 hours, a

response team will be dispatched.

Citizen Monitor InvestigationsFind Point Source Pollution Find Illicit Connections

Citizen MonitorsFind Point Source Pollution

Potential Future Projects Advanced Sample Kits.

Advanced Training classes.

Citizen and Professional Data on Bacteria and looking

into TMDL project.

Aquatic Macro-Invertebrate Sampling.

Signs of excellent Water Quality

Questions?

Water Quality Group

City of Plano’s TST program

History

• Started 2014 – built program separate

from TST

• Choosing high school vs. adults

• Partnered with TST in 2017

Identifying Locations

Recruitment

• Distributed fliers

• Utilized existing

volunteer database

• Maintain consistency

Training

• Once a year

• Coincides with

school schedules.

• Follows

requirements of TST

for indoor and

outdoor training

Volunteer Hours

• Adapting to students schedule

• Beginning – 14 hours

• Lost volunteers after training

– Modified for students

– Changed to 10 hours

• 2 training

• 8 each

Data Use

• Data used to build “norms” within Plano

– No current data

– Previously used state standards

Evaluations

• Evaluate every year

– Meeting times

– Student feedback

• Pre/post test for educational needs

– Meeting department needs

Challenges

• Personal Responsibility

• Kit Degradation

• Chemical upkeep

• Testing consistency